


Accused

by AlexanderTemple



Category: Original Work
Genre: Child Murder, Court, Crime, Death penalty, Justice, Lawyers, Murder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2019-11-16
Packaged: 2021-02-07 04:01:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21451687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexanderTemple/pseuds/AlexanderTemple
Summary: A mentally handicapped man has been accused of murdering a girl. I decided to defend him despite I was unsure if he was guilty or not. This would change my life and my family and I would have to live with people thinking that I was willing to defend the scum of the world!
Kudos: 1





	1. Jimmy

I sat in my office chair with a smile on my face. I was closing all the files on my desk and putting them in a box. Lucy was found innocent of poisoning her husband. It was a difficult case. The evidence was stacked against her. Her personality did not help either. She was a materialistic woman that married an old rich man. She was 40 years younger than him. He was poisoned and she would inherit his fortune and never have to worry about money again. The problem, of course, was that she was arrested for poisoning her husband.

The trial was not easy. The jury did not like her and it did not help that she insisted on wearing designer clothes at the trial. She showed no emotion what so ever. The evidence against her was very convincing. However, I managed to create doubt and build on this doubt. In the end, the Jury saw Lucy as a victim and an innocent young woman, that lost the love of her life.

Everyone was shocked when the verdict was "not guilty.". This was the only time I have seen Lucy show any emotion. She was shocked and wanted to shake my hands. I did not shake her hand but told her that she would get the bill. My job was done and I had no intention of being her friend. Deep down, I knew she was guilty!

You may ask me why I defended a woman that I knew was guilty. Some would think that this makes me responsible for the death of her husband not being punished. The fact is that this is how a good Justice system works. It is up to the prosecutor to show the jury that a person is guilty. It is up to the defense to challenge this. Maybe, in this case, I just did my work better than the prosecutor. I had no doubt that I was better than the majority of them, and unlike a public prosecutor, I did not have 90 cases on my desk.

People hate lawyers, especially those that help guilty people go free. The way I look at it, it's best that the accused gets the best defense that is possible, as the thought of an innocent person being accused of something is scary.

I must also admit, that people were willing to pay me a lot and they get what they pay for.

Shortly after the Lucy case, an old woman came to my office. She wanted me to defend her son that was accused of killing a 13-year-old girl. When she said this, I felt sick as I had a daughter that was 9. How could anyone kill a girl?

The woman was his mother. She told me that her son was arrested when the police found him in the girl's kitchen and he was holding the dead girl telling her to wake up. I listened as she told me this story with pictures of my daughter in my head. It seemed to me as if he was guilty when he was caught with the dead girl in the girl's house!

His mother disagreed. She told me that her son was mentally handicapped. She explained that he was an adult, but had the mind of a 4-year-old. The lady was crying as she explained that he was her only son, and he was not capable of hurting anything. She also explained that she had no money and begged I would take the job.

I looked at a picture of my daughter on my desk and lit a cigarette. How could anyone kill a small child? I knew this case could be a big case and it definitely would get media attention. I honestly did not want to get involved. What reputation would I have if I defended a child killer that was guilty! What if I won the case and he was allowed to roam the streets. I looked at the picture of my daughter once again thinking that no child would be safe. I had to turn this case down. It had nothing to do with that the mother had no money. It was because I did not want a case that I did not feel comfortable with. I just finished one case that took many hours from my life and this includes family life. I needed some time to lay low and be with my family.

The old woman broke down crying when I explained that I would not take the case. She offered me all the money she had saved up. This would pay for a few hours. I explained that it was not money. My wife would be looking for a divorce if I did not spend time with my family. She broke down and said he would get the death penalty. This was most likely true. How could I tell her that anyone that killed a child deserves to be put to death?

It was hard seeing her leave the office as she sobbed and said I was her last chance. I could understand how hard it is for a mother when everyone says her son is a murderer. I felt sorry as she left the office and even said a little prayer for her.

I was not in a mood to do anything. I could not stop thinking of the old lady. Who would help her? I am not talking about saving her son from the death penalty. I mean who would help her cope with her son's trial and explain that what he has done was not her fault. She most likely raised him in a good way. However he was not mentally developed, so he made a bad mistake that cost a girl her life. Someone had to be punished for her death. If he has done it, then he would get what he deserved. This did not make the mother a bad woman. She did nothing wrong.

I went home and spent some time with my wife. We ate a great dinner and it was nice being with my family. I enjoyed hearing about my wife's shopping trips and the gossip she had about all her friends. I never had to look at "Hollywood wives" to hear gossip. I just had to listen to my wife. The fact was that some of the gossip was very interesting while some gossip was the same thing I heard the last time. I don't know how many times I heard that Mrs. Dickens was on a diet. It was like she was starting a new diet every Monday.

After dinner, I played with my daughter. Her name is Wendy. She has this game where she tries different clothes on her dolls. I sat down next to her and suggested some clothes the doll should wear. Wendy would laugh and tell me that the clothes I suggested would not go well with what the doll had on. I must have a bad fashion sense. Despite this, I enjoyed sitting with Wendy and being part of her world.

When Wendy went to bed, I felt depressed. I picked up the newspaper and it was all about the dead girl. I felt sorry for the parents. I just spent some time with Wendy while at another house in town, there was a dad that was mourning because his daughter was killed.

What I did not like was that the media already had the handicapped man convicted. The proof was that he was in a house that he did not know and holding a dead girl he did not know. The media had him convicted before there was even a trial. Editorials were demanding the death penalty for the man. It annoyed me when the media assumed things and did not cover both sides of the case. Despite it was hard to believe at times, the media should remember that people are innocent until proven The trial should be in the courtroom and not the media.

The next day was the girl's funeral.

I thought about the funeral when I was sitting in my office. I had a few files out and was halfway going through them. It looked like the day would be a lazy day, in which I did not do much. For some reason, I kept looking at the picture of my daughter.

My secretary came in with some coffee and told me that she thought it was good that I did not take the case. She read the newspapers and it was obvious that the handicapped man killed the young girl. I did not answer her, as she was being honest in saying what the majority of people thought. The man had not been put on trial yet, and yet the media and public have already convicted him!

I picked up my coat and drove to the funeral. There was a crowd there, and I kept my distance as I observed the sad occasion. The atmosphere was grim as people grieved over a small white coffin. The reality stroke me, that a young girl was killed. This girl had a future and who knows what this future could have been. She could have been the best president we ever had, or cure cancer or she could have been a good mother. Now we would never know.

The parents were mourning and this was understandable. Which parent wants to outlive their child and on top of this witness that their child was murdered! They must have thought that the purpose of their life was over, and they must have had unwarranted guilt. They were most likely asking themselves if they could have protected their daughter better. Could they have done something to avoid this tragic death?

I was not the only one standing at a distance. I noticed the media and there were some detectives from the police station. I also noticed the lady that visited my office the day before. She was hiding behind a tree, However, I noticed a man standing alone looking down at the funeral. I could not see his face and yet I wondered who he was. He was wearing a baseball cap. Why did he not want to stand with the other people?

I was heading back to the office when I thought about this man. At the same time images of newspapers that convicted the handicapped man and my secretary went through my head. The accused man deserved a proper defense This was also for the dead girl. She was murdered and I did not want a man that could be innocent to die. The murderer had to be the one to be punished.

So I drove to the jail and asked to speak with the accused man. I was kicking myself inside why I was even doing this. I suppose the reason was that I had to see for myself if the man was innocent or not. During my career, I had this ability to look into a person's eye and I knew if they were innocent or guilty. It was like the case that I just finished. I knew that Lucy was guilty.

If I thought this man was guilty, I would not defend him! That was a promise I made to myself.

As I entered a small room, the accused was sitting there. He was very overweight and looked older than his age. I noticed he had small fat fingers. I sat down on a chair and started talking with him. He was very afraid and kept asking if he could go home. He had a painting class at the community center and did not want to come late to that, as he looked forward to it all week.

His name was Jimmy and I could see that I was not speaking with someone that was mentally an adult. I asked him why he was here and he told me the police said that he hurt a girl. Then he started crying and said he did not mean to hurt her. He was just trying to help her. I asked why he was in a house that he did not know. Jimmy did not look at me but swayed back and forth in his chair crying like a 5-year-old. The only thing I could understand was that she was crying and he wanted to help.

Then Jimmy looked in my eyes and asked if the young girl was mad at him. I slowly said that she was dead. Jimmy then stopped crying and got defiant telling me that only old people die. He still wanted to know if she was mad at him.

I looked into his eyes and for the first time, I could not see if he was guilty or not. He definitely did not understand the fact that he was accused of murdering a child. It seemed also as if he did not really understand that the girl was dead. Was this just an act or was it because he could not think like an adult?

I told him I would represent him and be his lawyer. Jimmy nodded and asked me if he was a bad boy? I told him that a judge will decide that.

The next day, I got the case files and started reading the police report. The police got an anonymous call that there was trouble at the girl's house. When they came, they found Jimmy kneeling on the floor as he held the girl. He was telling her to wake up. There was an old iron frying pan on the ground with the girl's blood on it.

The evidence was substantial. The frying pan had Jimmy's fingerprints on it. He did not know the girl or the parents and never was in the house before. Why was he there? The girl was not sexually abused, which was a small consolation. The front door and back door was open. There was no evidence of a fight, It appeared as if the girl was just hit by the frying pan and died.

There was no confession from Jimmy. He explained to the police that he was walking by the house, and heard a scream. He walked in to see if someone was hurt and seen the girl on the floor in the kitchen. He noticed a man running out the back door and he was wearing a baseball cap. Jimmy explained that he knelt by the girl and noticed she was bleeding. He tried to wake her up so they could walk to the doctor for a big band-aid.

This would be a difficult case. While the evidence against Jimmy was convincing, it led to some critical questions. Why was he in a house he did not know? Why were his fingerprints on the frying pan? Was the front door open, so he went in and the girl confronted him? He could have been afraid and without thinking hit the girl with a frying pan. My mind was going in circles thinking why he was actually in the house.

On the other side, Was there a man that ran out the back door. The strange man at the girl's funeral also had a baseball cap on. Was this something the police should have considered? If Jimmy did see a man run out, then he could be the murderer.

There was a doubt in this case.

That night, my wife was mad at me. She did not speak to me while we ate. Our daughter started talking, but when she noticed that her mother seemed upset, she stopped talking. So we ate our dinner in silence.

Later, when our daughter went to bed, My wife came down. I was reading some case files which she did not like.

" I do not want you to defend this man!" she finally said

" Why?"

" He is a child murderer. That poor girl laying in her grave and you are defending him!"

" He has not been convicted yet!"

" It is clear that he murdered the girl. Did you think about what would happen if you won the case, and a child murderer is out there in public"

"It's not that simple dear, He could be innocent. Would it be worse in convicting an innocent person and a child murderer is still out there?"

My wife was not listening. She told me she was still against me taking the case. She was also worried about how the case would affect our family. What would the school say to our daughter when they found out? What would our friends say? Would we have any friends left when this was over?

I sat staring at a cross of Jesus hanging on the wall. My wife was right. This would be no ordinary case. I was not even sure if Jimmy was innocent. Defending him would give me the reputation that I was willing to defend the worse people here on Earth. I doubted anything good would come from it.

This case would not be good for me or my family! Then why did I decide to defend Jimmy?


	2. Hurting a Fly

The first thing I needed to do is find out what sort of person Jimmy was. I asked his mother to visit my office again so she could tell me about him. Jimmy was born when she was only a teenager. He was born very early and had to stay in the hospital for weeks. When she finally took him home, her mom and Dad helped raise him. Despite the hard birth, he was an easy child to have. He ate and sleep and hardly complained at all. There were no signs that he was handicapped in any way.

As Jimmy grew older, his parents found out that despite he was a loving child, he was very slow in doing things such a sitting up, walking and talking. The doctors informed the parents that Jimmy was in some way brain damaged. This did not stop the parents from loving him and giving him the best possible upbringing. In time they knew that he was perfect in any way except that he was mentally not developing.

When Jimmy was a teen, the doctors suggested that he would be sent to a special home with staff trained to give children the best possible future. This was especially after his father died of cancer. The doctors were worried that Jimmy would be too much work for his widowed mother. She refused to send him anywhere as she thought what he needed was a home that was full of love. I liked this and imagined that I would do the same if Wendy (my daughter) was brain-damaged.

So there was nothing in the past to indicate that he did not know the difference between right and wrong. His mother showed nothing but love and raised him in a protective environment. She devoted her life to him and from what I could see, she has done a perfect job.

I decided that I would visit Jimmy again. Again he was brought in a small room. I started to explain to him that I am his lawyer and would try that he can go home to his mother. Jimmy did not understand a lot as he was restless sitting on the chair.

" They have no toys here!" he said.

" No this is a jail. It is for people who commit a crime."

" Is that small girl still mad at me?"

" I told you that she is dead the last time I came. People say that you hurt her very badly."

" I didn't mean to hurt her, I couldn't find a band-aid."

Jimmy started crying saying people thought that he was a bad boy. He wanted his toys and painting stuff. It was hard speaking with Jimmy, and some things he said could be considered as an admission. He said he did not mean to hurt her and wanted to find a band-aid. Any jury would understand that this was an admission. I could not seem to be able to speak to him about the case, as his answers were not concise and in some ways made the answers made him look guilty.

When I came back to the office, I read the newspapers. The headlines were news that I have accepted to defend Jimmy. The Editorials were very harsh about that saying I would do anything for fame. This upset me. This is possibly one of the worse ways of getting fame. I knew that people would hate me for taking the case. They would assume that I was helping a child murderer go free. I honestly thought that there were easier ways of becoming famous.

I threw the newspapers in the dust pin.

Then I opened a report from a psychologist. It was a long report that explored the mind and personality of Jimmy. There was nothing surprising in it. Jimmy had the mental capacities of a child. He knew he was different but loved life. It was the small things that made him happy. He was very close to his mother and he knew that she made a lot of sacrifices for him. Jimmy loved cartoons and he loved painting. He attended a community center several times a week, where he would sit and paint. He had some very good friends there.

One interesting thing about Jimmy is that he had no sexuality. He never showed any interest in females and never tried having a girlfriend. This would be an important factor for those that thought he wanted to molest the girl and she put up a fight. Jimmy simply did not understand about sexuality or think about it. It was not something that he needed.

Another interesting fact was that Jimmy did know the difference between right and wrong. Morality had no gray regions for him and his morality was close to what the church and his mother taught him. Jimmy did not like it when he was in trouble and he just wanted to make his mother happy. I sat down thinking if this could help the case. It obviously showed that Jimmy wanted to be good and not get in trouble,

I worked with the case for days and still had the same thought in the back of my head. Was I defending someone who killed a young girl? The media concluded that I was defending a child murderer, and that made me just as bad as him.

One evening, when I was at home, my daughter jumped on my lap. She was not happy. She was being teased at school!

"They tease me about you!" She started explaining.

" What do they say"

" They say you are helping a bad man that kills children."

" Well in a way, I am helping a man accused of hurting a girl. We do not know if he did it"

" Why help someone who did such a bad thing?"

" Someone must help him!"

" Not you!", My daughter cried, "The other children are teasing me because you are helping a child killer go free. Today a girl even pushed me on the ground saying my dad was evil!"

I didn't know what to say to my daughter. I just sat and hugged her and told her that she knew she nor I was evil. Children could be so cruel to each other. Adults could be mean with each other as well. If you read the newspapers or listened to the TV, no one had anything good to say about me. My old reputation of being a good defense lawyer was changed to a scum lawyer, that would do anything for fame.

One thing is that people did not like me for defending Jimmy. There was no excuse for how my family was treated. It was not Wendy's fault. Her teachers should have explained the situation and helped protect her. She was not old enough to understand and the same would be with any child that went to that school. Wendy was getting bullied about something that they did not understand. It can be hard for someone to understand that someone had to defend Jimmy!

The next day at work, I was skipping through the police report. It didn't give me any hope on how I could defend Jimmy. The evidence against him was so convincing. However, there was something in my mind telling me that something was not right. There was no mention of any man in the cap or why the backdoor was open. There was no indication that there was a fight or anything in the house was missing. The evidence was that Jimmy was holding the girl, and his fingerprints were on the frying pan. I must have looked at that report all morning to see if there was anything that could create a doubt. The police report was condemning. This would be a very hard case to defend. I had nothing to help me.

I decided to visit the girl's family. This is always a hard thing to do, especially when you are the defense lawyer. However, they let me in and were very hospitable. While they were giving me coffee, I looked around the house. It was a normal two-story house with nice furniture and it was kept clean. There were a lot of pictures of grandparents and the family. It was hard to sit and think that the girl in the pictures that was always smiling was now an angel in heaven.

Her mom did not say anything and I suspected if she did say something, she would end on tears.

" She was the best daughter one could have." her Dad explained, " She was always happy and full of life. She done well at school and had a lot of friends there. Her friends liked that she was so cheerful and always there when they needed a friend. She did not fall in the traps other teens experience. She did not flirt with boys or drink or take drugs. She was interested in other things. The family was very important to her and having good friends. She also was interested in gymnastics, and could have made it to the Olympic team."

I didn't know what to ask or say.

" Now she is gone." he continued, " I feel that it is my fault. I should never have left her alone in the house. However we were going shopping and she asked if she could stay home, as she had a project for school that she had to finish. I did not think twice about it, as I thought she was old enough to be alone. I never considered what would happen."

I decided that Wendy would never be left alone until she was 21.

" That handicapped retard killed her." the girl's dad said, " He came into our house which is a house he never was in before. He did not know my daughter and for some reason, he killed her. I never believed in the death penalty until now. That child killer needs to be punished. Even when he is punished, it will be nothing compared to how we feel and what my daughter felt. She is gone and we won't see her smile or hear her voice anymore. Life is so hard and lonely now! You are defending this man. How could you even help a man that caused so much pain?"

" Many people including my family are asking me the same question." I explained, " I will not pretend that I know the pain and sorrow you are going through. I can understand that you want to punish the person that has done this. I am defending the man because someone has to be his voice. We have to make sure that he is guilty. We have to make sure we do not convict an innocent man. I can tell you this, if he is proven guilty, I will lose the case and be happy I lost it. If he is guilty, he will be punished and punished hard."

I decided that I was not helping the parents, so I excused myself and go back to my office. They were convinced that Jimmy killed their daughter. Even though they wanted justice, they knew it would not bring their daughter back or stop the guilt that they had because they left their daughter alone at home.

My wife was waiting for me back at the office. She told me how hard this case was for the family. She knew that Wendy was being bullied at school. She said that she was suffering too. All her friends seemed to stop talking with her and the ones that did think that I was nothing more than a corrupt lawyer, like one that worked for the mafia. It was hard seeing my wife crying and begging me to make things better. She was not being unreasonable. She was telling me the family was suffering because of my work.

I gave her a hug and admitted that I thought that this case was a mistake. All the evidence shows that Jimmy killed the girl. I still had something in my mind saying that he is innocent, but that being said, the evidence is evidence. I explained to my wife that I could not leave the case now, as it was my belief that he needed a voice.

I told my wife that I was about to visit Jimmy and tell him that he would most likely get the death penalty. I wanted him to admit he was guilty and in this way, he could get a life sentence. This plea would make sure everyone got justice. I was surprised that my wife agreed to this as she said that the death penalty would mean he would not suffer enough. He needed life to repent on what he has done.

I met Jimmy at the small room once again and tried to tell him about the plea bargain that would mean he would get a life sentence. I was asking him if I could offer this bargain to the prosecution. It was obvious that he did not understand a word.

While I was thinking about how I could explain this to him, I swatted an annoying fly that was doing its best to destroy my concentration. The fly was dead on the small table and suddenly Jimmy started to panic and shout. He held the fly in his hands and shouted and asked how I could hurt it. He blew on the fly as he was trying to give life to it. I knew that I would not be able to get anywhere with him. So I left him at the table holding the fly.

That evening, my wife was reading some magazines and Wendy was playing with her dolls on the floor. Then it hit me. Jimmy was holding the dead fly and worried because it was hurt. The same happened with the dead girl. He was holding her as he knew she was hurt. It was obvious that Jimmy could not hurt a fly. How could he hurt a girl?

Maybe Jimmy was innocent.

I was bought back to my family when I heard Wendy scream. There was a brick on the floor next to her and broken glass all over. Someone threw a brick through the window, and it missed hitting my daughter by a few inches.


	3. Heaven or Earth

I do not think I was ever so afraid when the brick came through the window. I was not afraid for myself. The brick landed just beside my daughter and both her and my wife was crying in fear. I quickly took charge and told them that we should go upstairs. As we sat upstairs wondering if something else would happen, I was hugging my wife and daughter as images of the brick flying through the air a few inches from Wendy's head was going through my mind.

My wife told me that she warned me that this case would endanger their lives. I did not respond. I knew what she said was true. Someone threw the brick through our window because I was defending Jimmy. Was if this was a mad act of protest violence, or if it was a warning of what should come. The person that threw the brick wanted me to give up in defending Jimmy. I was afraid if this message was that if I did not give up the case, my family would be in danger.

The police came as well as some journalists. We hid inside the house as the police tried to find evidence. My wife was sleeping with Wendy as they were both afraid. I talked with a policeman that said that there would be a police car stationed outside our house while there was a need for it. I was, of course, grateful for this and at the same time disappointed that I had to be protected. 

I could not sleep that night. My life was in danger because I was defending someone accused of killing a child. He was not convicted in court but convicted by the media and the public. The wise thing was that I resign from the case so my family would be safe. However, then I would be surrendering to the lynching attitude and I would not be giving our justice system a chance. The choice was to make sure my family was safe or to harm the justice system we had. This was not easy. I loved my wife and my daughter more than anything else on this earth. Did I want to help undermine the justice system and make the world a worse place for my daughter?

The next day, I told my thoughts to my wife. She told me that she also thought a lot about it. She surprised me when she said that I should allow no one to bully me and my convictions and wish for a good justice system. She did not think Jimmy was innocent, but he deserved to be defended.

I gave my wife a hug and for the next hour, we sat without saying much.

We decided that my wife and Wendy should go to her mother's house until the trial was over. I was silent as they packed their bags and sat in the car. I felt like crying because I knew that I would miss them. I was mad at a few that would use violence because they did not agree that a person should be defended. I looked at my wife's car driving away and Wendy waving through the back window. This should not be necessary, but reality made it so.

When my family was gone, I went to the press. I usually hated talking to the press and rather do my work in the courtroom. However, now was the time that I gave Jimmy and my family a voice in the press.

“ As you know,” I started saying as microphones were pushed towards my face, “ I am Jimmy's defense lawyer. I will not stand here to convince you that he is innocent. What I will say is let the jury in the courtroom decide if he is guilty or not. What I am saying is Jimmy has been accused of something very bad. Something we all detest and something we all think should be punished to the limit of the law. This girl did not deserve to die. We are lucky though that we have a Justice system that presumes everyone is innocent until a court can prove that they are guilty. This means the prosecution must now prove beyond a doubt that Jimmy is guilty. I ask the media to let the prosecution do this, and stop assuming that Jimmy is guilty.”

I stopped as the press started asking question after question.

“ People think I am scum for defending this man” I continued, “ Last night someone threw a brick in my window. It nearly hit my daughter! How can this be defended? Is it bad that I am defending Jimmy? I am not getting paid for it. I will not gain more respect because of it and it even put my family in danger! The man that threw the brick wanted me to resign from the case. He most likely would be satisfied that Jimmy would be lynched by a mob. How would our society be if this happened? As I said, Jimmy deserves to have a voice in the courtroom. He deserves to be defended. We must trust that our justice system will find out if he is guilty or innocent. The media or a man with a brick has no right to do this!”

I sat in my car and drove away as I did not want to answer questions. I decided that I would visit Jimmy and see how he was doing. We met once again in the small room. We did not talk about the case. Jimmy talked about his mother and his friends at the community center. He told me that he missed them and he missed painting.

As I sat there, I was thinking that he was so human. It was like he had a good life despite that his brain was not normal. This man loved life and he loved the simple things about life. I liked talking with him and I was starting to consider him as a friend. The simple way he thought appealed to me. It was like nothing was complicated. Things were black or white with him.

The trial would start soon. Despite that I liked Jimmy, I was still in doubt if he was guilty or innocent. The only evidence that I had that he was innocent was his personality. He was mad when I killed a fly and as I said, life was so simple for him. There was the question about why the back door was open and this nagging feeling that the police report was not complete.

I spoke with my wife and Wendy the night before the trial. I missed them so much. My wife was worried about my safety and Wendy was afraid after nearly being hit by a brick. My daughter was quick enough to associate the brick with the teasing at school and didn't quite understand why Jimmy was so important for me. I understood how Wendy thought. She felt like I was putting Jimmy before the family!

The trial started under a lot of attention. The prosecution was very confident and I could understand this. They presented the evidence they had. Jimmy was holding the girl and she was hit by a frying pan. The frying pin had his fingerprints on it. The prosecution explained that Jimmy was brain damaged. He went into a house he did not know. The girl surprised him and he hit her with a frying pan because he was afraid he would get in trouble. They presented him as a man that did not know the difference between right and wrong and he had no regret that he killed the girl.

There was a break in the trial for a few weeks and I visited Jimmy. I did not have much to say except that the trial was not going too well. I told him now we would get a chance to tell another side of the story and then leave it up to the jury. Jimmy looked at me, not really understanding the court and the prosecution. He only said that they were bad people because they did not tell the truth. Then he looked at me and said something surprising. He told me I should visit my daughter while the court was taking a rest.

I did just this. Om my way up to my mother-in-law's house, where my wife and daughter were, I was thinking about Jimmy. He was not that stupid. He knew I had a daughter. It also showed that he could think of others. He did not demand that I spend all my time working for him. He was telling me to remember I had a family and they needed me too. This made me respect Jimmy more. I am not sure I would have said the same if I was in his position.

It was nice visiting my family. My daughter was not as mad as me as she was before. I told them that the trial would end soon, and we could get back to being a normal family. They appreciated that I took time from the trial to visit them. Wendy even said that I was a good dad that remembered he had a daughter. So for the next few days, I went on long walks with my wife and played games with my daughter. These few days have done wonders. It reminded me of what was important for me, and it gave me energy and hope for the case.

When the court started again, it was my turn to defend Jimmy. I told the jury about his past and the life he had. I told them that the most important thing in his life was his mother and his painting at the community center. I presented a psychologist report that explained that Jimmy did know what was right and wrong, and always tried to do the right things. I then explained that there were many questions that were never answered. Jimmy never went into a house that he did not know. So why did he go into this house? I also asked the jury why the back door was open.

I concluded by telling them what could have happened. Jimmy was on his way to the community center. He heard a girl screaming in the house. He went in to see if he could help. The girl was on the floor after being hit by the frying pan. The killer escaped through the back door while Jimmy pushed the frying pan away from the girl. He held the girl in his arms wondering where the band-aids were. Then the police came and concluded he was the one that killed her.

Jimmy and I were waiting in a small room while the Jury discussed the case. I reminded Jimmy that the prosecution had a strong case, but I hope we could have made some Jury members doubt it. Jimmy told me that he was happy I told them what really happened. To him, this was all the case needed. The jury needed to hear the truth. This was right. It was hard explaining to him that they now had two stories and they had to decide which one was the truth.

We were called back to the Jury. It did not take them long to decide and this was not good. I hate the routine where the jury gives the verdict to the judge. It takes so long and there are so many things that go through my head. The judge looked at the verdict and told the court. The whole courtroom was chaos with people cheering and crying

The judge said that Jimmy was guilty. He ruined a girl's future by brutally murdering him. The judge concluded that there was only one fair sentence, and that was the death penalty.

The next few days I tried all the tricks I could. I tried to appeal and tried for a pardon. This would never happen and if it did, the outcome would be the same. In the back of my mind, I thought that Jimmy was guilty. I was hoping that they would give him a life sentence, but we were very unlucky with the judge. Public opinion was strongly for the death penalty, and I wondered how much this influenced the judge.

I visited Jimmy as he was waiting for the execution. I told him that he lost the case. They would put him to sleep and he would wake up in heaven. I am not sure how much he understood. Jimmy was more interested in the paints that I took him. He painted as I tried to explain what would happen and my job was over. The only answer I got was that I was a good friend for letting him paint. He was happy now he said.

Usually, after a big case, I would take a small case. This gave me time with my family. However this time I just closed the office doors and went home. My wife and children were home now so we could be a family again. They, of course, were delighted that the whole thing was over and we could be normal again. We were a happy family. I helped and home cooking and cleaning and spent quality time with my family.

I tried to forget about Jimmy and the case. The jury accepted that he was guilty and there was every indication that he was guilty. However, I visited him a few times as he was waiting to be put to death. Jimmy was a friend by now and in some ways, I could not understand how he could hurt anyone.

I wrote a letter to try and get him pardoned and given a life sentence. I told the story about when I killed a fly, that upset Jimmy. I also explained that if Jimmy killed the girl, it was not done on purpose. It was a mistake.

The day came when Jimmy would be executed. I still hoped for the pardon. The death was something that no one could ever see or experience. Jimmy in a room and we could see him through a glass wall. When he was asked if he had any final words, he said that he needed to say his night prayers before he went to sleep. Jimmy was told that a priest already prayed with him and then he was given the injections. Slowly you could see him sleep and slowly you could see his soul leaving his body.

Jimmy was now dead.

I stood outside the building smoking a cigarette. I was disappointed that there was no pardon but was trying to convince myself that Justice was now done and Jimmy was at peace now,

The dead girl's dad came up to me and said he knew it was the wrong time. However, he asked me as Jimmy's lawyer if I knew where Jimmy hid the jewelry. I asked what jewelry and was told that Jimmy stole some jewelry that the dead girl's mom had.

For the next few days, I could not get this out of my mind. I read the police reports once again and there was no mention of stolen items. How could the police not investigate this? Jimmy was arrested at the house. He had no chance to hide something that he had stolen!

I lost all faith in myself and the justice system. For the next 4 months, I stayed home going over and over the trial and what I could have done. I could have found about the stolen items sooner and if I did, Jimmy could still be alive.

My wife got tired of me being at home, She told me she was now using our savings. She told me to accept that I lost the case and move on. She said I needed to work again and stop feeling sorry for myself.

So I went to the office and looked at some cases I could accept. There was a lot of mail after 4 months. One of them was from prison. I opened it and seen that it was a painting that Jimmy has done. It was a picture of him holding his mother's hand on one side and me on the other side. He wrote “ My mom, My friend and me”.

I decided that I needed to finish the case with Jimmy. So I visited the graveyard where he was buried. I said a few words when I was at his grave.

On the way out I visited the girls grave. There were a lot of flowers on it. I do not know why, but I started reading the cards. Some I could not read because the rain washed away the ink, but others I could read.

There was one card that shocked me. I fell to my knees as I read it.

“May you rest in peace in heaven and may the pains I have inflicted on you be forgotten and forgiven. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but this was no excuse for your life ending so quickly. I have committed the worse sin ever. I just hope and pray that you will forgive me for brutally taking your life.”

The end

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